On Friday, June 26, on the occasion of the Crimean Tatar Flag Day, the national flag of the Crimean Tatars was raised near the building of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine. From now on, it will fly alongside the state blue-and-yellow flag, as well as the flags of the European Union, the Armed Forces, the National Guard, and other units of the Defense Forces of Ukraine, which also fly near the building. This was reported by a correspondent of UNN from the scene.
Details
The flag-raising ceremony was attended by:
- Andrii Sybiha - Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine;
- Mustafa Dzhemilev - People's Deputy of Ukraine, one of the leaders of the Crimean Tatar people, Hero of Ukraine, former Chairman of the Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar People;
- Refat Chubarov - current Chairman of the Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar People.
Our photo correspondent publishes footage from the scene.
Photo: Andrii Khodkov
The Minister of Foreign Affairs noted that Crimea is and will remain part of Ukraine.
The Crimean Tatar flag flies alongside the State Flag of Ukraine because the future of the Crimean Tatar people and the future of Ukraine are inseparable. Despite deportation, decades of repression, and Russia's ongoing occupation, the Kremlin has failed to achieve its main objective - it has not broken the will of the Crimean Tatar people
Additionally
However, this flag was raised not only near the MFA building: a similar event took place near the building of the Kyiv City State Administration.
Deputy Head of the Kyiv City State Administration for Self-Government Powers, Oleh Kuyavskyi, noted that the flag of the Crimean Tatar people is a symbol of resilience, the struggle for freedom and the rights of the indigenous people of Ukraine. He added that under the conditions of the Russian occupation of Crimea, the celebration of Crimean Tatar Flag Day takes on special significance.
What is known about the national flag of the Crimean Tatars
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine reminded that the Crimean Tatar flag is a blue cloth with a golden tamga symbol in the upper left corner. The blue color symbolizes clear skies and peace, while the solid background represents the unity of the people.
According to historian Gulnara Abdullayeva, this flag existed during the times of the Crimean Khanate but was never used in campaigns. It is also called "mala kok," meaning it is light blue, not dark blue.
The symbol on the flag - the tamga, or "tarak-tamga" - is the ancestral symbol of the Giray dynasty, which ruled the Crimean Khanate from the 15th to the 18th centuries. This symbol also adorned the coins and seals of the Khanate, and its imprint is still preserved on the walls of the Khan's Palace in Bakhchysarai.
In the 20th century, the tamga became a symbol of the entire Crimean Tatar people. In 1917, during the first Kurultai - the national congress- the flag was also approved at the Bakhchysarai Palace. This was done by the Mufti of Crimea, Noman Çelebicihan, who would later become the first head of the government of the Crimean People's Republic.
But already in 1918, the peninsula was captured by the Russian Bolsheviks. The Crimean People's Republic and its governing bodies were liquidated, and Çelebicihan was killed.
The same fate awaited other figures of the Crimean Tatar national movement - the Bolsheviks acted similarly with other national liberation movements within the territory of the former Russian Empire. Ukrainians were not spared either.
During the Soviet period, the national symbols of the Crimean Tatar people, like those of other nationalities enslaved by the USSR, were banned as "bourgeois-nationalist." Only after the restoration of Ukraine's Independence in 1991 was the blue banner with a golden tamga in the upper left corner restored as the flag of the Crimean Tatar people.
Crimean Tatar Flag Day, World Refrigeration Day: What is celebrated on June 266/26/25, 6:30 AM